Low-voltage switching devices (e.g. motor starters, motor management systems or security systems) are increasingly characterized by a multiplicity of device parameters and device functions. Complex switching devices are increasingly capable of processing application logic (e.g. security programs), and can therefore be adapted flexibly to demands in the field.
The parameterization of these complex electronic switching devices normally takes place using an engineering system which provides both the logic and the parameters for the device. Modern engineering systems also have a graphical user interface (GUI) which makes it easy for the designer to parameterize the corresponding devices.
One aspect of the graphical user interface of the engineering system is that the functions offered by the device can be selected from a function catalog and circuit wired in a function plan by the designer. Within such a function plan, the designer can circuit wire function modules to each other and thereby produce a function logic that is entirely tailored to the specific application. FIG. 1 provides a simplified illustration of a graphical user interface of such an engineering system.
As the complexity of the switching devices increases, so does the number of function modules that have to be circuit wired in a function plan. Consequently, the plans become larger and extend over many pages. The number of connections (function module connections) between the function modules also increases.
One of the core functions of an engineering system is the documentation of such circuit wiring plans. The difficulty lies in extracting (printing out) complex and extensive circuit wiring plans (function plans) in such a way that they remain easy to read and interpret. Only then can the generated documentation be used not only for archiving purposes but also when optimizing the circuit wiring or when fault finding.
The readability of a function plan usually serves as a guide when producing the documentation, since the function plan is divided into n equal parts and each part is assigned to a function plan section (e.g. a printed page). When a printout is made, the paper size and the paper format can be adjusted by means of general options, for example. The page boundaries would have been displayed in the plan view in the engineering system, and therefore the designer could have taken this into consideration and positioned the function elements accordingly when producing the plan. Division of a circuit wiring plan into six printed pages is shown in FIG. 2, for example.